WORLD TRADE  
ORGANIZATION   
WT/REG/W/64 
24 October 2011 
 (11-5333) 
  
  
 
DRAFT REPORT (2011) OF THE  
COMMITTEE ON REGIONAL TRADE AGREEMENTS  
TO THE GENERAL COUNCIL 
 
Chairman:  Mr. François Riegert (France) 
  
I. INTRODUCTION 
1. At its first meeting in March 2011, the Comm ittee on Regional Trade Agreements (CRTA) 
elected Mr. François Riegert (Fra nce) as Chairman of the CRTA. 
2. During 2011, the Committee held four sessions (i n March, June, September and November).  
The minutes of those meetings are listed in Attachment 1.  Four sessions are foreseen in 2012. 
II. OBSERVER STATUS 
3. The Committee agreed to continue the granti ng of observer status in the CRTA to the 
Latin American Integration Association (LAIA), on an ad hoc  basis.  No decision was taken with 
respect to the requests for observer status lis ted in document WT/REG/W/11/Add.3, pending the 
definition of guidelines by the General Council. 
III. CONSIDERATION OF REGIONAL TRADE AGREEMENTS 
4. In the period 1 January to 15 October 2011, th e CRTA received 19 notifications of RTAs, 
11 in goods and 8 in services. 
5. During 2011, the Secretariat distributed factua l presentations of 18 RTAs (counting goods and 
services separately), all of which were used as th e basis for consideration of RTAs in the CRTA 
during 2011.
1   
6. According to paragraph 22 of the Transparen cy Mechanism (TM), the Secretariat is to 
prepare a factual abstract for those RTAs for wh ich the CRTA had concluded the factual examination 
by 31 December 2006 and for RTAs notified to the WTO under the Enabling Clause.  Seventy-two 
factual abstracts have been prepared and posted on the RTA Database and three have been sent to the 
Parties for comments.2 
                                                      
1 Japan-Switzerland (G&S);  Costa Rica-Panama (G&S);  China-Pakistan (S);  Japan-Viet Nam (G&S); 
Japan-Thailand (G&S);  European Union-Croatia (S);  European Union-Former Yugoslav Republic of 
Macedonia (S);  European Union-Serb ia (G);  European Unio n-Montenegro (G&S);  Turkey-Montenegro (G); 
European Union-Albania (S);  Turkey -Serbia (G);  Chile-China (S).   
2 EU (25) Enlargement (G); EFTA-FYROM (G);  EFTA-Morocco (G).  WT/REG/W/64 
Page 2  
 
  IV. EARLY ANNOUNCEMENTS 
7. Paragraph 1 of the TM provides for Members par ticipating in new negotiations and parties to 
a newly signed RTA to provide information to the S ecretariat, to be posted on the WTO website.  In 
2011, a total of 7 early announcements were recei ved from Members, 5 for RTAs under negotiation 
and 2 for newly signed RTAs.
3 
V. SUBSEQUENT NOTIFICATION AND REPORTING  
8. Paragraph 14 of the TM provides for changes affe cting the implementation of an RTA, or the 
operation of an already implemented RTA to be notif ied as soon as possible after such changes occur.  
Such communications are to be made available on the WTO website.  In the period 1 January to 
15 October 2011, notifications of changes for 3 RTAs had been received and posted on the RTA 
Database.4 
9. Paragraph 15 of the TM provides for parties to  an RTA to submit a short written report on the 
realization of the liberalization commitments in the RTA as originally notified at the end of the RTA's 
implementation period.  No such re ports were submitted during 2011. 
VI. DATABASE ON RTAS 
10. Paragraph 21 of the TM provides for the Secr etariat to establish and maintain an updated 
electronic database on individual RTAs.  The databa se was launched in Janua ry 2009 and is available 
on the WTO public website.   
VII. PROCEDURES TO IMPROVE AND FACILITATE THE EXAMINATION PROCESS 
11. No discussion took place on this item. 
VIII. SYSTEMIC IMPLICATIONS OF REGIONAL TRADE AGREEMENTS AND 
INITIATIVES FOR THE MULTILATERAL TRADING SYSTEM AND THE 
RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN THEM 
12. At its 62nd [and 63rd] Session[s] in September [and November] 2011, the Committee 
discussed a proposal on RTAs for the 8th Ministerial Conference co-sponsored by several Members - 
documents WT/REG/W/61 and Add.1, dated 20 and 27 September 2011;  and document 
WT/REG/W/63, dated 21 October 2011. 
IX. FINAL REMARKS 
13. In an effort to encourage the notification of no n-notified RTAs, the Chairman with the help of 
the Secretariat, drew up a list of non-notified RTAs wh ich have been verified by their parties as being 
in force and appeared in factual presentations ci rculated between Septem ber 2009 and March 2011.  
This list will be updated and circulated in advance of future CRTA meetings. 
14. Although considerable progress has been made in the preparation of factual presentations, the 
Committee continues to experience so me difficulties in adhering to its work programme.  This is due 
to a number of factors:  delays in the receipt of statistical data from parties, data discrepancies in Members' submissions, and delays in the receipt of comments from parties.     
                                                      
3 Under negotiation:  Canada-Ukraine; Switzerland-China; EFTA-Bosnia and Herzegovina; 
EFTA-Indonesia;  EFTA-Russia/Belaru s/Kazakhstan.  Newly signed:  Cost a Rica-Peru; Costa Rica-Singapore. 
4 EFTA-Chile;  EFTA-Turkey;  EFTA-Croatia.  WT/REG/W/64 
 Page 3 
 
 
  ATTACHMENT 
 
Minutes of the Meetings held in 2011 
  
Sixtieth Session –14-15 March 2011 
 
WT/REG/M/60 
 
WT/REG273/M/1 Japan - Switzerland, goods and services 
 WT/REG281/M/1 Peru - China, goods and services 
 WT/REG264/M/1 Costa Rica - Panama, goods and services   Sixty-first Session – 28 June 2011 
 
 WT/REG/M/61 
 
WT/REG237/M/2 China - Pakistan, services WT/REG275/M/1 Japan - Viet Nam, goods and services WT/REG235/M/1 Japan - Thailand, goods and services WT/REG142/M/3 European Union - Croatia, services 
WT/REG129/M/3 European Union - the Fo rmer Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, 
services 
WT/REG285/M/1 European Union - Serbia, goods [non-Member] WT/REG236/M/1 European Union - Montenegro, goods and services [non-Member] WT/REG282/M/1 Turkey - Montenegro, goods [non-Member] 
  
Sixty-second Session – 22-23 September 2011 
 
WT/REG/M/62 
 WT/REG226/M/2 European Union - Albania, services 
WT/REG288/M/1 Turkey - Serbia, goods [non-Member] 
  Sixty-third Session – 9-10 November 2011 (to be issued) 
  WT/REG/M/63 
 
 WT/REG/W/64  Draft Report (2011) of the CRTA to the General Council   WT/REG230/M/2 Chile - China, services  
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